Last month we had a stretch of unusually warm weather which accelerated the growth of many flowering tree species. In visiting the Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge over the weekend, it looks like the birds are a little early, too.

This is the first time I have photographed Eastern Bluebirds (Sialia sialis) and felt fortunate to find a pair at their nest hole. The male had just pulled his head out of the hole after feeding the little ones. He flew off a few seconds later and the female entered the nest.

The refuge was very quiet and the continued improvements I talked about last year are still being worked on. Those improvements are done by bulldozers, backhoes and dump trucks bringing a lot of intrusions to what is normally a quiet natural area. Once they are completed, I will be looking forward to seeing even more wildlife pairing up.

I have seen many woodpeckers at this pond in the past so there are a lot of natural cavities for bluebirds there. This was the first time I have seen them and I do like that they are in a natural setting. My one wish was I need a longer lens. That photo is highly cropped. Good for the web but not much else.

The tree swallows are used to people and I was only about 5 feet away from them. Always busy coming and going.

These are gorgeous, Scott. I never see bluebirds or tree swallows, so they’re a treat, and I never make good mallard photos, so they’re a treat too. The refuge managers must be doing something right over there. Good for them.

Thanks, Gerry! Amazing what a few hundreds miles and a change in latitude will change the kind of wildlife you see. I am reserving my judgement. There was a lot more wildlife around a couple of years ago before they started the project.

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to my personal journal through my viewfinder. A place where I leave the world behind and try to find the spirit of what I am seeing.

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